Positive #1: The Happiness 101 Sky Dive. I already told the entire story here on the site. Click here to read it.

Positive #2: Snowball Fight. I got ganged up on in a snowball fight. I wasn’t wearing a coat or even SHOES!! Leading the way was my daughter quickly followed by my wife & my daughter’s friend. My mother-in-law was cheering them on (and videotaping). I would like to share the video but they made me promise to never go public with it.

Shae is Safe

Positive #3: Finding Shae Maddox. When I look back over the year, and think of when my heart was really full and re-filled for days afterward, it was when I got the news that Shae Maddox had been found safe. She had run away and was missing for weeks. I felt so happy for her mother. It was a great moment for me in 2010. You may remember her from her picture. Celebrate with me that Shae is safe. Click here to link to the post that I put here on the site.

Click for Video

Positive #4: Speaking at ARUP Laboratories. I love talking about Happiness and in June I had the opportunity to give an hour talk at ARUP Laboratories. In it, I covered the highlights of Happiness 101 (it is a six week course). You’re welcome to view the video series. Click here to watch them.

Positive #5: My wife. We celebrated our 21st anniversary in September. 2010 has definitely been a year of growth for us as individuals. Fortunately, we are very good ensuring that when we grow, we grow together. I am so blessed to be her husband.

Positives for December 26, 2010

Positive #1: Bought drapes for my office. I have wanted to do this for MONTHS. The after Christmas sale allowed me to buy over $600 worth of drapes for less than $300. Falalalala, la la la la 😉 (shared on my Facebook page)

Positive #2: The new semester of Happiness 101 (beginning January 12th) is filling up fast. I love to see the class taking shape. If everyone who has expressed interest confirmed, the class would be full. If you’re interested in getting in, I suggest you get your application in SOON. (shared on the Facebook Happiness 101 Fan Page)

Positive #3: ‘Glad we made it home in one piece. Roads were very slick – even for my wife, who is very good at driving in icy conditions. ‘Didn’t see a single accident. Yea!! (Shared via YouTube account-HappyTherapist)

Positive #4: KSL has a great website where you can not only get the news but they have a great classified and list of upcoming events. I plan on advertising Happiness 101’s next semester there – even though there are only a couple of slots open. (Shared via MeetUp.com)

Positives for December 24, 2010

Positive #2 – Funerals. A funeral is a ceremony that helps us to come to grips with the loss. A funeral is also an opportunity to celebrate the life of the deceased. Funerals are one of those events that brings family together. It is also a chance to show support and respect to those left behind. Today, I am grateful for the opportunity to go to funerals. (Written on my MeetUp.com message board)

Positive #3: Holiday Wreath Appetizer ‘Made out of crescent rolls shaped like a wreath and topped with a sour cream and cream cheese spread. Click here for the recipe

Positive #4: Cooking timers! Without them we would probably burn a lot of our food – like the aforementioned Holiday Wreath Appetizer

Positive #5: Christmas Eve Dinner with Friends. This year we were invited over to our friend’s for Christmas Eve dinner. ‘Something a little different. I love the gift giving of Christmas but gathering with good friends and family is the best part. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night.
~Frank

Positive: To-Do’s, Ta-Done. Ta-dah!

Originally posted on October 23rd, 2010
I have a significant list of to-do’s. I even have them categorized: things to do today, things to this week, things to do someday, scheduled to-do’s and so on. Kudos to Outlook for helping me to keep my life straight. Anyway, as part of the ultimate task of sculpting my life, I have set about hacking, whacking, working and weeding to get these lists down to a manageable size. Chiefly this has been done with persistence and perseverance – NOT trying to do it all at once. Well, it’s taken over three months of sculpting but I bore down so deeply into these to-do’s today, I swore I heard an audible thud when I struck bottom – the sound of shovel against treasure chest. Inside lay the most priceless of gems, peace.

Positive: Change

Originally posted September 24th, 2010
Change is inevitable. Sometimes change is our choice. Sometimes not. Using the serenity prayer can help us to figure out how to approach it. To resist change that is inevitable is a choice. You may find that resisting it may cause you anxiety, frustration and/or anger. Accepting it can lead to serenity, calm and/or peace.

Were there no change, then everything would remain the same. We would inevitably become restless and bored, snug and secure in our blanket of predictability. Change gives us the opportunity to experience challenge and prove once again that we are stronger than we ever thought we were.

Positive: Personal Relevance

Originally posted September 20th, 2010
As you know, I have been writing my positives here, on Facebook, YouTube and Meetup.com, but last night I read something changed my viewpoint of positives: personal relevance. In the passage, it challenged me to looked at the relatedness of things. Specifically between the paper page I was looking at – and a cloud in the sky. Are they in any way relevant? Yes! Without the cloud, the rain would not fall. If the rain does not fall, the tree cannot grow. If there are no trees, we cannot make new paper. ‘Kind of a “positive” version of the game “Six degrees of separation of Kevin Bacon”. I have been able to find the positive in everything from lint to 9/11 but somehow it really does feel more personal now. Imagine how much stronger the relevance is with people! I have SO much to say about the relevance between people, I think I will save it for a separate blog.

Positive #2: Fear

Originally posted September 16th, 2010
Today I acknowledge and befriend the emotion of fear. I recognize that fear has played a very important role in the survivor of my ancestors. Fear made them more alert to possible dangers, which kept them along to procreate and play a part in my birth. I use fear as a warning light on my dashboard, alerting my mind to possible hazard or pitfalls ahead. I recognize fear as my ally, not my enemy.

Positive: Raisins

Originally posted September 10th, 2010
Yesterday I saw a record number of clients seen in a single day. Today I almost matched it. When seeing clients back to back to back to back, I don’t always have time to eat. Thank goodness for raisins. They are nutritious and keep me going. They are also delicious in oatmeal (which I eat often). So, today I give thanks for these tasty wrinkled treats.